The Foodprint Project is an ongoing exploration of food and urbanism founded by my good friends Sarah Rich and Nicola Twilley. As part of the weekend’s festivities they’re hosting a conference at LACMA on December 9 (which is free and open to the public) that will examine topics like culinary cartography and edible archaeology. And on Saturday, December 8, our walking tour will bring those themes to life as we examine the “foodscape” of one of the most food-centric areas of Los Angeles. The Arts District itself is home to a thriving creative community launching plenty of edible startups, but it also borders both the Warehouse District, where food products are still produced using traditional manufacturing methods, and the Produce District, a massive international trade center that distributes most of the fruits and vegetables consumed in the city.

Along the way we’ll visit the coffee-roasting infrastructure of LA’s celebrated Handsome Coffee, check out an artisanal distillery, explore the inside of West Central Produce’s state-of-the-art banana ripening facilities, preview a new local food market, and peek inside the exciting farm-to-table program of the restaurant Bestia. We’ll also be joined by several developers and city leaders, and, of course, there will be a few surprises along the way. And the tour will end with a punch-bowl-punctuated happy hour at Villains Tavern, one of my favorite bars in the city.

The tour is Saturday, December 8 from 1:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m. with the happy hour kicking off at 5:00. Tickets are $15 and can be purchased right here. And be sure to head to LACMA the next day for more helpings of food, cities and technology. Hope to see you there!

Top image: Exterior view of the loading dock at West Coast Fruit Distributors, part of the Produce Market, 1900; USC Digital Libraries